Troy Ave hasn't reached the mountaintop yet in terms of commercial success, but he's on his way. That's what the Brooklyn, N.Y., rapper tells journalist Elliot Wilson in a recent segment of 'THE TRUTH' video series, in which he discusses his slow rise in hip-hop, scoring a spot on New York's Hot 97 Summer Jam stage this year and making the 2014 XXL Freshman cover.

The well-respected lyricist said he wanted to be on the cover for some time, and though he believed he should have been selected years ago, Troy never got frustrated. He simply continued to work hard and feed the streets.

"I wanted the freshman cover for the past two years, and you'll see people on the cover and you might feel like, or the fans might feel like, 'Yo damn, Troy Ave, you should have been on there ahead of them, or whatever,'" said the 28-year-old spitter. "Even at times I might have felt like I should be on there ahead of them, but I ain't never express that or put that negativity out there."

Instead, Troy said he focused on what he needed to do to secure a spot on the XXL cover, which is why he's been grinding extra hard these past couple of years.

And all of that steady work has also helped the rapper land a coveted slot on Hot 97's annual Summer Jam main stage. He's the first independent artist to play the major show -- not the festival stage. He actually wasn't surprised when he got the call he was selected to perform.

"They said 'How long until you on the main stage, Troy Ave'? I said next year. One year exactly," he recalled. "When I heard them announce it, they had everybody on the radio announcing it... I heard my name, that s--- meant everything. That s--- was like a dope accomplishment in life."

Wilson then took the interview from the street to the sneaker store KITH NYC to sit down with Troy and his manager Hovain Hylton to discuss why the rapper won't sign just any deal.

Hylton says there hasn't been a company to match their numbers yet, and so far, Troy is doing fine without signing to a major. The rapper echoed those comments.

"You got to think man, you ain't gonna give me what I got," explained the B$B artist. "I got on motherf---ing Versace socks, man, motherf---ing Rolex watches, thousands of dollars in my pockets for no reason, just fucking around. You got to come to the table."

Troy also says he's already completed his next album, 'Major Without A Deal.' He hasn't released a release date just yet. The effort is the follow-up to his 2013 debut LP, 'New York City: The Album.'

Watch him speak on his "big" forthcoming 'Your Style' remix, the influence and sound of his music and the manager-artist relationship.